7654 - Droids Battle Pack: This kit includes a droid transport carrier, a STAP "bike" and 7 droids (4 Battle Droids and 3 Super Battle Droids).
In small hands, the STAP tends to come apart quite easily, especially where the two clear base pieces fit together. Same with the blasters on the droid carrier.
My only complaint is about the Battle Droids - their arms/hands are molded in such a position that they cannot grasp their weapons in the upright position - they must hold them sideways. That, and the blasters are the clunky-looking two-piece jobs. For comparison, look at the Battle Droids included in 7662, the Trade Federation MTT. Those droids have arms/hands molded to grasp their weapons upright, and have the more realistic-looking molded blasters.
Overall, it's a good value when you consider you get seven droid figures and two small vehicles in the kit. I give it a 6 out of 10.
7655 - Clone Troopers Battle Pack: This kit includes a speeder bike, a turret position, and 4 Clone Troopers.
I like the speeder bike, as it looks cool and holds up well to handling. I can take or leave the turret - I would have rather had a second speeder bike to be honest. And I wish there were a couple more Clone Troopers included. But at least they give you three different kinds of clones (one Shock Trooper, one Star Corps Trooper, and two Clone Troopers).
The helmets tend to come off the troopers frequently, so I may just end up gluing them to the black heads to save on frustration.
Another good value for the money, and I give this kit a 7 out of 10.
7656 - General Grievous Starfighter: A very cool kit! Included are the Starfighter and a General Grievous figure (complete with 4 arms, 4 lightsabers, and a blaster).
There's something about the General's Starfighter that reminds me of the air racers of the 1930s and 1940s - sleek and powerful, yet sturdy enough to take a beating.
In smaller hands, the (bleep)ing canopy comes off over and over and over...frustrating for all parties involved. Same goes for the canopy slider mechanism and the two blaster cannons. You'll spend a lot of time putting this one back together many times.
Still, it's a great-looking kit, and makes a nice addition to your collection. I give it a 7 out of 10.
7667 - Imperial Dropship: What a clever little vehicle! This kit includes a dropship and 4 figures (1 Shadow Stormtrooper pilot and 3 Stormtroopers).
I've always had a soft spot in my heart for Stormtroopers, so how could I not like this kit? The tail pivots up and forward, allowing you to detach the platform the Stormtroopers are riding on. I wish they had included one more Stormtrooper, just to have an even 4 figures sitting on the platform.
It holds up well to handling, which is always nice. Well, except for the Stormtrooper's helmets, which frequently fall off (just like the Clone Trooper's helmets). I give this kit a 7 out of 10.
7668 - Rebel Scout Speeder: This kit includes a scout speeder and 4 Rebel Troopers.
The speeder looks good and holds up nicely to handling for the most part. The little clips for the Rebel's blasters are a great detail! The blaster cannon detaches easily for quick placement, which is nice, but tends to fall off time and again in smaller hands.
Just don't get me started on the trooper's helmets - they fall off even more frequently than the helmets of the Clone Troopers and Stormtroopers! Grr...
Now if LEGO makes a similar kit with some Hoth troopers, now you're talking! I give this kit a 5 out of 10.
TopKat
Friday, March 28, 2008
Wednesday, March 26, 2008
Playmobil Overview
I didn't have any Playmobil toys growing up, but I sure wish I did! My sister introduced me to the ubiquitous smiling figures when she bought them for her girls.
Playmobil figures were first introduced in 1974. The basic Playmobil figure is almost 3 inches tall, and can stand, sit, bend at the waist. You can rotate the head, arms, and hands. The hands are shaped to grasp a huge assortment of accessories.
The recommended age for Playmobil is 4+ due to the many small parts, some that can pose choking hazards to little ones, so use your own judgement - if your child is prone to putting things in his or her mouth, Playmobil may not be the best choice.
I wanted my kids to play with their Playmobil toys starting at 3, so I made sure I was the first one to open all new Playmobil sets. Any and all small parts went straight into ziploc storage bags (along with the instructions), to be saved for later use when the kids were older.
Another potential downside of Playmobil is the frustration factor, especially when dealing with small hands (ages 3 to 5). Some items tend to fall apart during play (not break, mind you) which can lead to some unhappy campers. Case in point:
The Jet Airliner (3185) is a great toy. It was one of my first Playmobil purchases two or three years ago, and it still gets a lot of use today. The problem is that some of the pieces fell off rather easily, such as the wheels and tail assembly. My solution was to take the tail and wheels off, and set them aside. Not perfect, but it worked for my kids. I also ended up using some Zap-A-Gap (super glue) to fasten the four small red connectors located in the wing, because they fell out a lot.
Overall, I would give Playmobil a solid 9 on a scale of 1 to 10, with 10 being "Outstanding." As long as you remove any potential safety concerns (small parts) and are ready to deal with some minor frustration (mostly from your youngest players), Playmobil is a great toy. All three of my kids still love Playmobil, and I see many potential years of creative and fun play in store for both the kids and the toys.
Official Playmobil website:
http://www.playmobil.com/index.html
Playmobil figures were first introduced in 1974. The basic Playmobil figure is almost 3 inches tall, and can stand, sit, bend at the waist. You can rotate the head, arms, and hands. The hands are shaped to grasp a huge assortment of accessories.
The recommended age for Playmobil is 4+ due to the many small parts, some that can pose choking hazards to little ones, so use your own judgement - if your child is prone to putting things in his or her mouth, Playmobil may not be the best choice.
I wanted my kids to play with their Playmobil toys starting at 3, so I made sure I was the first one to open all new Playmobil sets. Any and all small parts went straight into ziploc storage bags (along with the instructions), to be saved for later use when the kids were older.
Another potential downside of Playmobil is the frustration factor, especially when dealing with small hands (ages 3 to 5). Some items tend to fall apart during play (not break, mind you) which can lead to some unhappy campers. Case in point:
The Jet Airliner (3185) is a great toy. It was one of my first Playmobil purchases two or three years ago, and it still gets a lot of use today. The problem is that some of the pieces fell off rather easily, such as the wheels and tail assembly. My solution was to take the tail and wheels off, and set them aside. Not perfect, but it worked for my kids. I also ended up using some Zap-A-Gap (super glue) to fasten the four small red connectors located in the wing, because they fell out a lot.
Overall, I would give Playmobil a solid 9 on a scale of 1 to 10, with 10 being "Outstanding." As long as you remove any potential safety concerns (small parts) and are ready to deal with some minor frustration (mostly from your youngest players), Playmobil is a great toy. All three of my kids still love Playmobil, and I see many potential years of creative and fun play in store for both the kids and the toys.
Official Playmobil website:
http://www.playmobil.com/index.html
Welcome toy fans!
Greetings, toy fans of all ages, and welcome to my toy blog. I've always been a huge fan of toys, and thankfully never got "too old" to play with toys. I'll be posting reviews of a wide variety of toys, divided up into several categories:
* Baby & Toddler Toys
* Kid's Toys (ages 3+)
* Big Kid's Toys (teens on up)
* Video/PC Games
All reviews will come my own personal use of a given product, or from playing experience with my children (3, 5, and 7). I hope my opinions and observations are useful to you!
TopKat
* Baby & Toddler Toys
* Kid's Toys (ages 3+)
* Big Kid's Toys (teens on up)
* Video/PC Games
All reviews will come my own personal use of a given product, or from playing experience with my children (3, 5, and 7). I hope my opinions and observations are useful to you!
TopKat
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